MORE than £1,000 was raised on Saturday for Help for Heroes through the Worcester Dragon Boat Racing Club Charity Regatta.

The event had been organised by local charity volunteer Wendy Laws whose team won the plate in 2006.

Wendy's son, Robbie, was on the team in 2006 but was tragically killed in Afghanistan on July 4 2009 while serving with the 2nd Mercian Regt, aged just 18.

This year Wendy, from Kidderminster, put a team together composed of friends and colleagues from Royal Mail who have raised over £1,000 through sponsorship in memory of Robbie Laws for Help for Heroes.

The charity supports serving and reservist personnel and veterans who have suffered injuries or illness as a result of their service to the nation. The charity also helps their close family and dependents. This has been achieved by Help for Heroes recovery centres, Help for Heroes grants, a network of specialist charity partners and organisations. In addition Help for Heroes has established the Band of Brothers and Band of Sisters Fellowships.

In the early years of Help for Heroes the urgent need was helping battlefield wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan physically rebuild their lives as well as those injured during training. However, as a result of active service, recent times have seen an increasing number seek support for psychological wounds. In response Help for Heroes has launched a new £7.5 million “Hidden Wounds” psychological wellbeing service. The programme supports serving members of the armed forces, veterans, and military families who are living with common mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, hyper awareness and other everyday mental health issues that might cause an inability to sleep soundly, anger and other mental problems.With the ongoing support of the public Help for Heroes intends to be by their sides for as long as they need.